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Global Forum speakers to share insights on international HR - Inside SHRM - at the Society for Human Resource Management Global Forum's 26th Annual Conference and Exposition

HR Magazine, March, 2003 by Beth McConnell

HR professionals with a worldwide perspective on their vocation will gather in Los Angeles March 31-April 2 for the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM) Global Forum's 26th Annual Conference and Exposition.

There attendees will hear international HR leaders address through both concurrent and general sessions how HR roles differ around the world and how to balance global and local needs. They also will be able to earn a certificate in international assignment management.

Keynote Speakers

William C. Taylor, co-founder of Fast Company magazine, will open the conference in a general session March 31. Taylor will explore working and winning in the new world of business.

Before starting Fast Company, Taylor was associate editor of the Harvard Business Review, where he focused on themes such as U.S.-Japan high-tech competition, global strategies and the new business models emerging in Silicon Valley. He is co-author of three books on global business and management and is a graduate of Princeton University and the MIT Sloan School of Management.

Keynoter Rafiah Salim, assistant secretary general for human resource management for the United Nations, will share her insights into global HR on April 1, and Vladimir Pucik, a professor of international HR and strategy at the International Institute for Management Development, is scheduled to close the conference on April 2.

Born in Prague, Czechoslovakia, where he studied international economics, law and political science, Pucik earned a master's degree in international affairs and a doctorate in business administration from Columbia University. He has been a member of the faculties at The Center for Advanced Human Resource Studies at the School of Industrial and Labor Relations at Cornell University and at the School of Business at the University of Michigan. He also was a visiting scholar for three years at Kelo and Hitotsubashi University in Tokyo.

Pucik also has written several books, including The Global Challenge: Frameworks for International Human Resource Management and Accelerating International Growth.

Certificate Program

As a professional development opportunity, the conference again is offering the International Assignment Management certificate program within the framework of the conference sessions. It provides an overview of the process, activities and action items to consider when managing international assignees. Discussion topics may include corporate issues to consider when establishing a company overseas, compensating assignees into the United States, taxation issues, local national employment and international employment law.

The program is designed for practitioners with global accountability for international assignment management and employment.

The Human Resource Certification Institute (HRCI) has approved the conference programming on an hour-for-hour basis for re-certification credit hours for the Professional in Human Resources and Senior Professional in Human Resources designation. For more information, visit HRCI at www.hrci.org/recertification.> Conference Sessions

The concurrent sessions are divided into two tracks: fundamentals and strategies. Sessions offered in the fundamentals track will focus on the basics of international HR and offer practical how-to information on day-to-day HR and business matters. The sessions slated under the strategies track will address techniques and methods to help develop and manage global HR initiatives, policies and procedures to align them with business initiatives.

Conference Extras

The Global Forum conference will feature an exhibit hall on March 31 and April 1 at the Century Plaza Hotel & Spa. The SHRMStore also will be open, with resources on international HR management. Authors of new offerings on the subject will be available for autographs. Browse the offerings at www.shrm.org/shrmstore.> And just for fun, a welcome orientation scheduled for March 31 will provide attendees with the opportunity to network with other HR professionals from around the world.

In addition, the Global Forum will hold its "Under the Stars" party on April 1, celebrating the golden age of Hollywood. Attendees can enjoy a buffet supper and vintage films on the grounds of the hotel and around the pool.

For more information, visit www.shrm.org/conferences/global/concurrent.htm.>